Glass-working machine.



No. 767,391. PATENTED AUG. 16, 1904. I. W. COLBURN. GLASS WORKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED HARM 3, 1903.

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No. 767,391. PATENTED AUG. 16, 1904. L W. GOLBURN.

GLASS WORKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAE. 3, 1903. NO MODEL. 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Patented August 16, 1904.

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IRVING W. COLBURN, OF FRANKLIN, PENNSYLVANIA.

GLASS-WORKING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 767,391, dated August 16, 1904,

Application filed March 3, 1903.

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Be it known that I, IRVING W. COLBURN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Franklin, in the county of Venango and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Glassorking Machines, of which the following is a specification. 1

My invention relates to a novel means or apparatus for producing articles of glass.

The object is to furnish a machine that will manufacture cylinders of glass of large size and brilliant surface adapted to be cutoff at the ends, slit open, and flattened out into sheets suitable for window-glass.

The machine is also adapted to the making of cylindrical and spherical receptacles of large size after suitable manipulation.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a front elevation. Fig. 2 is a side elevation looking from the left of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a front elevation, partly in section, on line A B of Fig. 2. Fig. i is a rear elevation showing a cylinder of glass in place. Fig. 5 is a vertical section on line C D of Figs. 1, 3, and 6. Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on line E F of Figs. 1, t, and 5. Fig.

7 is a detail front elevation, partly in section, to show the mechanism of the gripping-nut 31, Fig. 3, for clasping the screw 30. Fig. 8 is a detail side elevation, partly in section, of the grippingnut mechanism. Fig. 9 is a plain view, partly in section, of the grippingnut mechanism.

Referring to the drawings, 1 is the upright supporting main frame of the machine, consisting in part of a housing for certain portions of the mechanism and preferably erected on a suitable foundation of masonry 71, having a pit 7 2 within. Said frame is provided with ways 80 80, extending to a suitable height, on which traverses the verticallymoving carriage 3. At the top of the frame are pulleys 3 1 35, turning on shafts 62 63, over which passes a rope or chain 33, attached at one end to the carriage 3 and at the other end to a counterbalance-weight 38 to facilitate the vertical movement of said carriage. A long vertical revoluble shaft as is stepped into the frame in bearings 67 67, upon which Serial No. 145,877. (No model.)

for the greater part of its length is cut the screw 30 for effecting the movements of the carriage 3. To this end the carriage bears the gripping-nut 31 31, which can be thrown into or out of engagement with the screw 30 at will by means of a lever 32 and rocking plate 89, pivoted on pin 90, said rocking plate engaging by its extremities two lugs 81 81, formed on the rear portions of the screwthreaded members 31 31 of the gripping-nut pivoted on pin 70, by which means the movement of hand-lever 32 closes or uncloses the jaws of the gripping-nut on the said screw 30. The carriage 3 can also be moved by hand up or down at will when the gripping-jaws are unclosed.

The screw is actuated by appropriate mechanism, later to be described, contained in the frame-housing. Mounted on the frame at one side and bolted thereto directly under the projecting arm of the carriage 3 is an upright cylindrical bottomless mold 2 of suitable thickness of metal, polished within, for the reception of a charge of molten or plastic glass. Beneath the center of the mold is a lower holding-head 5, roughened or corrugated upon its upper face to give it the quality of adhesiveness to plastic glass. This head fits the mold and is detachably supported upon a hollow spindle-sleeve 8, on which is cut or mounted a rack 60. Said spindlesleeve is movable up and down in bearings 61 61. Within this movable sleeve-support is a tubular-mold center piece 6, apertured at 51 and supported on bearing 50. It does not move with the sleeve-support and terminates just within the upper holding-head 4. The latter is corrugated or roughened on its contacting face similarly to and for the same purpose as the lower holding-head, and is detachably sustained upon an upper head-support 7, apertured, like the tubular-mold center piece 6, at 52, which apertures are in alinement. The holding-heads 4: and 5 can both be removed from their respective supports by taking out the holding-pins 59 7 3. Upper head-support 7 is vertically held in movable carriage 3 and travels with it. To

its top is attached by tubular stem 58 the flexible tube 57, connecting with air-pipe 56. The tubular-mold. center piece 6 is connocted at the bottom by air-pipe 55 with airpipe 56, and the latter, by means of regu-' lable air-valve 54, connects with air-pipe 53, leading from a suitable source of compressed air.

The mechanism for operating the movements of the carriage 3 and the holding-heads 4 and 5 will now be explained. At one side of main frame 1 in bearings 76 is the driving-shaft 11, having on its outer end the fast and loose pulleys 9 10 and on its inner end the rotary disk 12. A belt from a suitable source of power runs upon said fast pulley 9 to communicate motion to the machinery. In running contact with frictional drivingdisk 12 is the frictional disk 13, mounted on rotary shaft 14, which rotates in bearings 17 17 68. On its upper portion it has a circular rack 69 cut, which is in mesh with a pinion 18 on shaft 19 in bearings 77. Outside of the housing on said shaft 19 is a hand-wheel 20 and a hand-operated frictional clamp 21 ofordinary construction, the former for adjusting by hand the position of shaft 14 and frictional disk 13 and the latter for fixing the same in position. Said disk 13 and its contacting disk 12 thus form a variable-speed, gear by which the rotary motion of shaft 14 can be perfectly controlled and varied from zero to the desired maximum, both positively and negatively, by crossing the center of disk 12. This variable speed of shaft 14 is communicated to the mechanism of the machine as follows: Splined on shaft 14 by grooved spline 15 is a sleeve 16, with a worm cut thereon, held between bearings 17 17, so as to rotate with shaft 14, but not partaking of its longitudinal movements. Said worm is in engagement with a worm-gear 22, loose on a shaft 23, supported in bearings 49. Adjacent to this worm-gear, splined on shaft 23, is a clutch member 24, revoluble with shaft 23, but capable of being moved into or out of engagement with a clutch member formed integrally on gear 22 by means of a clutch-fork 25 on shaft 26 in bearing 78, operated by hand lever 27, outside of the housing. Shaft 23, thus under variable-speed control through pinion 18 and hand-wheel 20 and under operative control through said lever 27, operates the movements of carriage 3 through bevel-gears 28 and 29, the latter fast on screw-shaft and the former fast on shaft 23.

The corresponding movements of lower holding-head 5 are effected as follows: Splined on shaft 23 is also aclutch member 44, revolving with said shaft and capable of engagement with a counterpart clutch member formed on pinion 43, the latter loose on shaft 23 and engaging with gear 42 on shaft 40, held in bearings 41. On the opposite extremity of said shaft 40 is a pinion 39, engaging with rack on hollow spindle-sleeve and lower head-support 8. The clutch member 44 is operated by clutch-fork 46 on shaft 47 in bearings 79. On said shaft 47 outside the housing, is hand-lever 48, by which means the movements of lower head 5 are controlled. The gears 43 42 and pinion 39 are so proportioned. as to move the said lower holding-head in unison with upper holding-head 4 when both are in motion.

is the bearing-face for the traveling carriage on the ways 80, and 66 the embracing lugs on said carriage.

is a finished-glass cylinder in position.

Operation: Starting with the machine at rest, driving power is applied to driving-pulley 9 on shaft 11 from an external source of power. The carriage 3 and upper holdinghead 4 should be in a position high enough to permit a suitable charge of molten or plastic glass to be poured into the mold 2 by any of the means and appliances employed for handling molten glass in glass-furnaces. At this stage clutch member 24 is closed on its counterpart, and gripping-nut 31 is out of engagement with screw 30. Clutch member 44 is out of engagement. Lower holding-head 5 is in its lowermost position, as in Figs. 3 and 5. Frictional disk 13 is so placed relatively to driving-disk 12 as to give downward travel to carriage 3 when gripping-nut 31 is applied. The holding-heads 4 and 5 are prepared for adhesion to plastic glass in any suitable manner. One efiicient way is to heat them and then coat their roughened faces with molten glass, cracking off surplus glass. A charge of molten or plastic glass is now poured into mold 2, filling it, as in Figs. 3 and 5, the mold having previously been brought to the temperature most suitable for preventing the adhesion of the plastic glass therein to its polished surface. Carriage 3 is now pulled down by hand, so as to bring prepared upper holding-head 4 into contact with the molten or plastic glass, as in Fig. 3. Gripping-nut 31 is now applied to the screw 30 by means of handle 32, which gives a powerful forcible contact of the holding-heads with the glass in the mold, securing their firm adhesion. The frictional disk 13 is now, by means of handwheel 20, brought to the other side of drivingdisk 13, which reverses the direction of motion of the connected mechanism. Clutch member 44 is at the same time thrown into engagement, and both holding-heads start on their upward travel at the same rate of speed, carrying the mass of plastic glass with them out of the mold. This glass will be apertured in the space left by the tubular-mold center piece 6. When lower holding-head 5 has reached the position shown in Fig. 4, clutch member 44 is immediately thrown out of engagement, arresting the upward motion of the lower holding-head, and simultaneously therewith the compressed-air valve 54 is opened, admitting air through pipes 56 55 57 58 to the interior of the plastic mass left vacant by the rela- IIO tive recession of fixed-mold center piece 6, while upper holding-head 4: continues in its upward travel, carrying with it the plastic glass adhering thereto, which stretches and extends into a lengthening hollow cylinder and at the same time expands in diameter and grows thinner in its walls, owing to the expansive power of the compressed air within, admitted in regulated quantity by air-valve 54:, as before said. The form of the hollow object will be determined by the relative preponderance of the drawing and expanding forces, so that when a cylinder is desired less relative expansive force will be applied than when globular or spherical objects are to be produced, Outside manipulation may also be applied in conjunction when special designs and configurations are desired, the same as in the manual art of glass-working. These operations are at all times under the control of the skilled operator by means of the handwheel 20, controlling the variable-speed gear and its connected mechanism, the air-regulating valve 54, the clutch member 24, the clutch member stat by handles 27 and &8, respectively, and gripping-nut 31, controlled by lever 32. iVhen the article is finished and sufficiently cooled, the operation is brought to rest by throwing clutch member 24: out of engagement. The product can now be removed from the machine by taking out pins 59 and 73 and thereby releasing the holding-heads, or the article can be cracked oif from the heads by well-known means and the heads removed afterward. The same holding-heads can be replaced and used for the next operation, or duplicates can be used. The parts are restored to their first positions, and a new cycle of operations is executed.

The loose pulley 10 has the function usual in analogous machinery of providing a place for the running belt which transmits the power by means of an ordinary belt-shifter to bring the machine to rest.

The object of the upright frame and vertical manipulation of the article therein is to avoid the distorting effect of gravity on the large cylinder of plastic glass during the operation of expansion by blowing which occurs in a horizontal machine, wherein a rotative mechanism is required, which mechanism is dispensed with in this vertical machine.

I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. An upright open-ended mold for plastic glass, disk-shaped holding-heads above and below the mold, formed on their contacting faces to secure adhesion to the plastic glass in the mold, means for bringing said heads into forcible adhesion with the plastic glass in the mold, and means for removing the plastic casting lengthwise from the mold while held by the contacting heads.

2. A fixed upright tubular open-ended mold for plastic glass, two disk-shaped holdingheads above and below formed on their contacting faces for making a firm adhesion to.

the plastic glass, means for removing the casting lengthwise from the mold while held by the holding-heads. and means for raising the adhering upper holding-head to stretch the glass casting while it is held by the lower holding-head.

3. Afixed upright tubularopen-ended mold for plastic glass, adhesive disk-shaped holding-heads above and below said mold, means for causing forcible adhesion of said holdingheads to the plastic glass, a stationary tubularmold center piece axially located within said mold, and means for removing the plastic glass vertically from the mold and center piece while held between the adhesive holding-heads.

4. A fixed upright tubular open-ended mold for plastic glass, movable disk-shaped adhesive holding-heads fitting the mold at top and bottom, means for causing forcible adhesion of the heads to the plastic glass, a stationary tubular-mold center piece centrally located in the mold, a tubular support in alinement with said mold center piece, carrying the upperholding-head, means for raising the lower holding-head to force the plastic charge out of the mold, means for introducing compressed air in graduated quantity within the plastic charge simultaneously through the tubular-mold center piece and the said tubular support, and means for raising the tubular support and upper holding-head at regulated speed while the latteris secured to theplastic charge, whereby the glass is extended at the same time that it is expanded and thinned in its walls by the air-pressure within.

5. Afixed upright tubular open-ended mold for plastic glass, movable disk-shaped holdingheads having adhesively-formed contacting faces fitting said mold at top and bottom, means for raising the lowerholding-head to force the plastic charge out of the mold, a vertically-moving carriage carrying the upper holding-head, means for raisingsaid carriage and head at. regulated speed, means for con' necting and disconnecting said carriage to and from the elevating means to control the period of operation of the upper holding-head, and means for introducing compressed air in graduated quantity at will within the plastic charge while the latter is free from the mold, and in process of extension by the rising of the upper holding-head, whereby said charge is simultaneously expanded, extended, and thinned in its walls.

6. A prime driving-shaft, a variable-speed gear driven by said shaft, a hand-wheel and mechanism for controlling said variable-speed gear, a fixed upright tubular open-ended mold for plastic glass,movable disk-shaped holdingheads fitting said mold at top and bottom, a movable upright sleeve supporting the lower holding-head, a rack on said sleeve, a pinion engaging said rack, a train of shafting and gearing connecting said. variable-speed gear with said pinion, and an intermediate clutch mechanism for connecting and disconnecting the variable-speed gear and said rack-and-pinion movement for raising and lowering the said lower holding-head.

7. A prime driving-shaft, a variable-speed gear driven by said shaft, a hand-wheel and connected mechanism for controlling said variable-speed gear, a fixed upright tubular open-ended mold for plastic glass, movable disk-shaped holding-heads fitting said mold at top and bottom, a vertically-movable carriage carrying the upper holding-head, a rotary screw-shaft for traversing said carriage up and down, a means for connecting and disconnecting said carriage to and from said screw-shaft at will, a system of gears and shafting between said variable-speed gear and said screw-shaft, and a clutch mechanism for putting said screw-shaft into and out of connection with the variable-speed gear.

8. An upright main frame, having vertical ways, a carriage traveling on said ways, means for traversing said carriage up and down, an upper holding-head carried on said carriage, a lower holding-head on said frame in alinement with said upper holding-head, a fixed upright tubular open-ended mold fitting and in alinement with said holding-heads, a stationary tubular-mold center piece centrally located with respect to said mold and holdingheads, means for moving the lower holdinghead up and down through the mold, and means for introducing compressed air in graduated quantity simultaneously through said tubular-mold center pieceand the upper holding-hcad, to expand the plastic glass.

9. An upright stationary tubular open-ended mold, a lower holding-head, fitting the mold, with means for moving the same up and down, a stationary tubular-mold center piece centrally located with reference to the mold and lower holding-head, a tubular upper holdingsupport with means for moving the same vertically up or down at regulable speed, an upper holding-head on said support, means for attaching said holding-heads firmly to the plastic charge, and means for introducing compressed air in graduated quantity simultane ously through the upper head-support and the tubular-mold center piece while the upper holding-head is being moved upward, whereby the hollow casting of plastic glass is at the same time vertically extended, laterally expanded, and thinned in its walls.

10. A prime driving-sl'1aft,a main frictionalgear disk on the inner end of said shaft, a vertically-movable rotatory shaft held in three bearings, an edge contact-disk on said vertical shaft, in operative contact with the main frictional disk, means for moving the vertical rotatory shaft up and down while rotating, a sleeve having a worm thereon splined on said vertical shaft between the two lower bearings, a cross-shaft on which a worm-gear in engagement with said worm is loosely mounted, a clutch member splined on said cross-shaft, with means for throwing it into and out of en gagement with the said worm-gear, a vertically-traveling carriage, a screw for operating said carriage, and gear connections between said cross-shaft and said screw, whereby the carriage is operated.

11. A prime drivingshaft,a main frictionalgear disk on the inner end of said shaft, a vertically-movable rotatory shaft held in three bearings, a circular rack formed on said vertical shaft, a pinion in engagement with said rack, a hand-wheel to operate said pinion, a clamping means to fix the pinion and vertical shaft in position, an edge contact-disk on said vertical shaft, in operative contact with the main frictional disk constituting a variablespeed gear, a worm sleeved and splined on said vertical shaft between the two lower bearings, by which it is held against vertical movement but allowed to rotate, a cross-shaft, a wormgear mounted on said cross-shaft to retate with it, in engagement with the sleeved worm, by which means said cross-shaft is rotated, an upright movable sleeve-support, an adhesive lower holding-head on said sleevesupport, a rack longitudinally formed on said sleeve-support, a pinion engaging said rack to move it up or down, gears and. shafting connecting said pinion with the cross-shaft and wormgear, and a clutch intermediate of said worm-gear and said pinion, whereby the variable-speed gear is connected and disconnected with and from said sleeve-support and holding-head.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in presence of two witnesses.

IRVING W. (JOLBURN. Witnesses:

FRED. D. OILER, ROBT. F. GLENN. 

